Baraje Tackles FG On The Economy

Chairman of the new Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje, has condemned what he describes as the rape of the country’s economy by the Federal Government
Despite claims to the contrary by the administration, he said there was overwhelming evidence was that the Nigerian economy has been run aground by the present administration and is now in comatose. With the massive scale of officially-induced oil theft, the dwindling returns from oil and massive looting going on at the federal level, Nigeria is surely on the brink of economic collapse, Baraje said.
In a statement signed yesterday by the National Publicity Secretary of the group, Ezechukwuemeka Eze, said that “one manifestation of this is the Federal Government’s inability to pay states their share of the Federal Allocation since July. The last time that states were paid was for part of July. The arrears continue to mount by the day. As at today, the states are being owed N336 billion, with the N75 billion being the balance of the July 2013 arrears, N121 billion from June augmentation and over N90 billion as July augmentation.
The implication of this unfortunate development is that the 36 states have become impoverished and unable to meet up with basic obligations, including the payment of workers’ monthly salaries, which many of the states have been unable to do due to lack of funds. Most states have also as a result been unable to meet their obligation to contractors. This dangerous scenario is complemented by the growing rate of unemployment, which presently hovers around 80 per cent.
“All these portend very grave danger for our dear country as youth and labour restiveness appears imminent. Nigerians should expect further worsening of the unemployment situation and the loss of jobs, which is inevitable should the Federal Government continue with the present shoddy management of the economy which leaves much room for abuse”, the new PDP added
The party recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had revealed that the country earned a total of N1.05 trillion in July, but regretted that the minister had not been able to pay states their due statutory allocations.
The new PDP under the leadership of Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje strongly condemns this unfortunate situation which indicates that the managers of the nation’s economy may be at their wits end. It is unacceptable for Nigerians to be subjected to this grand level of suffering even when their country is one of the world’s leading oil producers.
The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) headed by Rivers State Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi recently raised the alarm, calling on the finance minister to resign in view of her shoddy running of the economy. As usual, the minister, who is also the coordinating minister for the economy, denied that the economy is running on troubled waters, but events have since proved her wrong.
Since nobody has a monopoly of wisdom, we wish to advise President Jonathan to humbly consider the NGF Report on the nation’s economy and see what he can borrow from it to take the country’s economy out of the woods.
The new PDP advised Mr President to act fast to rescue the situation as there is a limit to which Nigerians can be pushed.